


ce garçon est une ville

by jbhmalum



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Dublin (City), Fluff, Love, M/M, and calum, hhuuh, this is luke (re:me) being in love with this city
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:40:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27566149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jbhmalum/pseuds/jbhmalum
Summary: If Luke could spend the rest of his life roaming the streets of Dublin at 3am, the slight autumn wind ruffling his hair and Calum's carefree laugh gracing his ears as their hands swing happily between them, he would do it in a second.
Relationships: Luke Hemmings/Calum Hood
Comments: 8
Kudos: 21





	ce garçon est une ville

**Author's Note:**

> This is the most self-indulgent thing I've ever written omg, if you know me you know I'm in love with Ireland and I just, I've had this idea to write Cake in Ireland for a few months now, and I wanted to do something else entirely, something way longer, and it might come at some point but I just Had to write this in the mean time. I'm gonna cry I want to live in this fic. This is just me.
> 
> Title is French and means 'This boy is a city' btw. :)
> 
> I hope you feel the love in it. Enjoy xx

Luke fell in love with the city first.

He wouldn't necessarily say Dublin is pretty. She's old, as most other European capitals, but she doesn’t have this typically romantic look to her that Paris or Rome have. She’s not full of architecturally breathtaking monuments, and the few that Luke has seen don’t really stand out. There’s no Eiffel Tower or Sagrada Familia to be particularly excited about. Ireland is famous for its infinite green landscapes and cliffs, not its capital. Dublin is industrial and grey, for the most part, buried under the fog or drowned in rain for a great part of the year.

And yet.

And yet Luke has never seen a city with so much soul and so full of life. And he loves Sydney, he does; it’s his hometown, after all, but this is different. Dublin calls to him. The entire country does, if Luke is being honest, but Dublin has seeped into Luke’s blood the way Sydney never has. Luke has only been here for eight months, got here when the days were getting a bit less cold and flowers were growing back on trees, but now it’s halfway through October and he already feels at home.

He _found_ himself here. Built himself up, let himself grow into who he is. In this place where old men would offer to help him out when he would get lost with directions, where he regularly sees young couples go on runs together along the Liffey as he has a cup of coffee and a croissant in a different coffee shop each time. Where the sun sets behind Christ Church Cathedral to leave the night to settle like a warm and safe blanket over the buzzing streets. Where tourists bump into each other in the summer as they try to make their way to the next shop or into Temple Bar, and where he’s made friends who have taught him so much about the place, the music, the people.

Where the streets collide into each other rapidly, few of them stretching out for too long, a street singer at the corner of each one sharing their talent and passion in the mild heat or in the pouring rain, strangers’ smiles the only coin they really care for.

Dame Street is Luke’s favourite, for some reason. The main street south of the river, busy and loud at any time of the day with students and workers and people out to do their shopping or just to enjoy the sun. Except right now.

Right now it’s as good as any alleyway in a small, dejected town. Most bars have closed down. They’re at an off-peak time in the middle of the night where there are no buses circulating, the cabs making themselves scarce. Luke knows if they were to go up one of the perpendicular alleys into Temple Bar and then cross a bridge until they got to O'Connell Street, it’d be a bit more lively. Not by much, but there are more street lights over there, more clubs that are still open, as well as a couple 24 hours fast food restaurants.

Here on the main street it’s dark, and it’s silent. But still, Luke feels alive and lively, blood pumping through his veins excitedly. He can feel the life the street has been reaping all day, settled like dirt on the pavement over the hours only to be swept up by Luke’s feet and running up and covering his whole body until it found a crack and entered Luke’s soul.

It’s one of Luke’s favourite feelings. To feel the city inside of him, let her joy and cheerful spirits fill him up and make him whole even when he’s out here on his own in the middle of the night. Well. Not exactly on his own.

But Calum is as much a part of him as Luke could hope him to be, holding Luke’s hand with his big but gentle fingers and looking up at the starless sky as he hums along to some song that’s probably been stuck in his head since they left that last bar about two hours ago. Luke loves watching him. Luke loves watching his favourite person in his favourite place on Earth. It’s so simple, yet everything Luke needs.

If Luke could spend the rest of his life roaming the streets of Dublin at 3am, the slight autumn wind ruffling his hair and Calum's carefree laugh gracing his ears as their hands swing happily between them, he would do it in a second.

Because yes, Luke fell in love with the city first. But then he found Calum somewhere in between the Doc Martens store and the Bubble Waffle Factory, all curls and squishy cheeks and warm dark eyes on a Friday afternoon as he tried not to drop any ice cream on his shirt, and Luke fell for the boy, harder than he’d fallen for the city.

And it’s clear the two are intertwined. Luke wouldn’t have found the boy without the city, and maybe that’s why he loves Calum so much. Maybe that’s why the two of them are so effortlessly connected.

“Hey Luke?” Calum asks suddenly, voice like melted chocolate shaking Luke out of his reverie.

“Yeah?”

“What's the most adventurous thing you've ever done?” He's not looking at Luke, gaze still focused on the sky. Luke doesn't blame him; there might not be any stars, but it's still quite clear for that time of the year, the deep blue swallowing them up along with everything around them. A rare treat.

“Hum, I'm not sure?” Luke says, frowning as he looks through his memory. “Maybe that one time I cheated during an exam in senior year of high school?” 

Calum's face turns to him then, raising an eyebrow at him. “That's it? Really? You're telling me you've never even gone out at night without telling your parents?” Luke shakes his head no. “Broken into a shop center at night? Gone skinny dipping?” No again. Calum’s eyes widen. “You’ve never gone skinny dipping? Luke, love, we are so going skinny dipping you and I.”

“What? No! It’s gotta be so cold.”

Calum rolls his eyes fondly. “I didn’t mean right now! But I _will_ be taking you once the days have warmed up, and that is a threat. See, I’m giving you a few months to prepare yourself for this!”

Luke hums, thinking. “I don’t understand why skinny dipping is something I should do.”

“Well, first of all, it’s fun. A little illegal but not too much, just enough for adrenaline to spike up your spine and make your heart beat faster. And secondly, if you do it with the right person, I believe it can be quite romantic. Wouldn’t you like to kiss me in the water under the streetlights and the Dublin night sky?” Calum teases, but the glint in his eyes tells Luke he’s being earnest here.

“Okay, you make a great point” Luke agrees. Calum will probably have forgotten come spring, anyway. And in the case that he doesn’t, Luke supposes Calum did actually make a great point. He’s starting to see the appeal.

“Great, now come on!” Calum shouts through a laugh, letting go of Luke's hand and getting off the sidewalk. 

“What are you doing? Be careful!” Luke watches as Calum walks to the middle of the road, escaping the couple of cars that drive past him, not without beeping at him. 

Calum just lets out another laugh, spinning around on himself, arms wide open as if he's inviting the night to embrace him. The night should be so lucky. The feeling of being scooped up in Calum’s arms is on par with feeling alive in this city. “Come on, you need to do something more interesting than cheating on a test. Join me!” 

“Cal, no, that’s dangerous,” Luke contests, more out of habit than anything; there are barely any cars on the road. Calum looks like he’s very much aware of that, too. He’s dressed in black from head to toe, black boots and black jeans and leather jacket over his black uni sweater, yet it isn’t hard for Luke to see him in the night, even if from twenty meters away Calum looks like he’s blending into his surroundings perfectly.

But Luke has no merit; he thinks he’d be able to pick Calum out of any crowd with his eyes closed, so really, the dark of the night is nothing.

Figuring Calum is safe enough over there, Luke relaxes a little, and instead just watches him. Calum looks so happy, dancing like a child and tiptoeing around the few cars that pass him by, light on his feet. In another world, another universe, Luke thinks Calum might have been a dancer. He’s so effortlessly graceful, no matter how ridiculous some of his moves are. Maybe it’s just Luke, though. He’s so in awe of Calum, always, that he could be wearing a plastic bag and doing the most disgusting things imaginable and Luke would still think he’s the most beautiful being in the entire Galaxy.

Luke lets out a small smile, a slight blush rising to his cheeks at the thought. Not in embarrassment or anything of the sort. Those thoughts aren’t a secret, nor are they anything new. Well, they’re not old, either, but they’re familiar now, nestled comfortably at the back of his mind like they’re here to stay. It doesn’t mean that Luke doesn’t warm up all over when they move at the forefront of his mind every now and again.

Calum makes big gestures at him, waving exaggeratedly, making Luke laugh lightly. “Are you not coming? You really should, you can see both sides of the street from here. You’ll love it,” Calum says, which isn’t fair. Luke can’t resist that.

He waits for the three cars coming up to drive past, and makes his way to Calum, almost running until he practically collides into Calum’s side, making them tumble to the side slightly. Calum just laughs, keeping them both upright by gripping Luke’s hands in his. Calum’s are a bit cold after having left the warm confines of Luke’s, but Luke doesn’t really mind. He’ll warm them up again in no time.

Not letting go of Luke’s hands, Calum sways slightly on his spot, ignoring the cab that beeps at them. “Dance with me,” Calum asks, and Luke doesn’t know how to dance with his two left feet, but he tries, for Calum. He mirrors him, mainly moving his shoulders and swinging their hands, but he must look real awkward, because Calum lets out a chuckle before taking pity on him.

Calum tugs on Luke’s hands, and immediately Luke finds himself with his head over Calum’s shoulder, feet snuggled in between Calum’s, Calum’s arms wrapped loosely around his back. Luke smiles with a contented sigh, loops his own arms around Calum’s neck and rests his head against Calum’s, and then they sway around like this, barely moving to the sound of their matching heartbeats.

They stay silent, no words needed between them, and Luke almost forgets they’re currently in the middle of the road. But he doesn’t forget to take everything in. Calum was right, they can see both sides at once more clearly like this. Ahead to his left, the Olympia Theatre, where Luke has never been to, but he’s determined to bring Calum to a gig there someday. To his right, Barnardo Square, with a name fancier than the eight concrete benches that occupy it, and just behind that the small street leading to Chez Max, the French restaurant Calum had taken him to on their third date. Where they’d officially gotten together, moment sealed with a passionate kiss that had gotten them an applause from the other patrons.

Another smile tugs at his lips at the memory. He tears his eyes away and moves back a bit so that they can still hold each other, but so that Luke can look into Calum’s eyes. They remain silent, both of them content to just take in the other, matching smiles on their lips. Out of his focus Luke sees Dame Street stretching out behind Calum, giant trees barely concealing Trinity College, where Calum will go back once the weekend is over. Luke doesn’t really pay attention to it, though. He could lose himself into Calum’s brown eyes, he has before, and he’s about to once again, probably, but then a car drives too closely to them, and suddenly Luke is screeching as water hits his ankles where they’re not covered.

“What the hell?” Calum only laughs at Luke’s indignation, not letting him move away from him. “I told you it wasn’t a good idea to stand in the middle of the road.”

Calum just keeps laughing his sweet laugh like it doesn’t matter, because nothing can affect Calum, before cutting off Luke’s complaining by kissing him once, twice, short and chaste, but it works. Luke just pouts, and Calum takes Luke’s hand back in his before tugging him back towards the sidewalk. There’s an older couple watching them with fond smiles on their faces, and Luke blushes thinking that they’ve probably just been watching him and Calum for a while.

Calum doesn’t seem to care about that either, just slides his arm around Luke’s waist, plastering his side to Luke’s as they go up one of those intersecting streets, crossing Temple Bar to make their way to the brighter side of the city as they chat about everything and nothing. Calum promises him a milkshake, and so Calum buys him a strawberry milkshake at McDonald’s up on O’Connell Street some thirty minutes later along with a chocolate milkshake for himself. 

They drink them quietly on a bench along the waterfront, feet steady on the wooden floor and the river quiet. There’s slightly more hustle here, as Luke predicted, mostly people their age getting out of clubs or into other ones, and Luke and Calum huddle close together to hide from the wind picking up. It’s possible it’s a tiny bit too cold for milkshakes, but Luke and Calum will have them under any circumstance. That was one of the things they first bonded over, and now they have them together as often as they can.

“You know what, actually, what I said earlier wasn’t true,” Luke says halfway through his drink, turning to Calum, who listens intently. “Coming all the way here from Sydney with only a dream and no plan is probably the most adventurous I’ve ever been.”

Calum hums in agreement. “I can’t argue with that, that was pretty adventurous.”

“It could have gone south, like, in so many ways.” Luke is honestly surprised he got so lucky. He’s got a job, and he can pay his rent without too much trouble, which is a rare feat these days.

“Brought you to me though,” Calum smiles smugly, straw between his lips and cheeks getting red from the cold. He looks like Luke’s dreams right now. “Can’t be too bad, surely.”

Luke rolls his eyes playfully. “Well, it’s not bad at all, you know that.”

“I know.”

“But, you were the icing on the cake,” Luke starts. He sounds earnest, but it’s fitting for the night, he muses. Not that he’s usually dishonest, but there’s something especially sincere in the air tonight. Maybe the streets had gathered quite a lot of vulnerability and honesty today before Luke picked it up. “It’s not even that. You’re part of this, you know? This life here. You’re part of _me_ now. And I know it’s crazy to say that, because we’ve barely known each other for half a year but– you know what I mean, right? You feel it too?”

Calum’s hand flies to Luke’s own rosy cheek, cold palm cuping his cheek. The look in his eyes matches how Luke is feeling right now, brighter than the sky. “Of course I feel it too. I’ve been feeling it since you came up to me in that alley and your presence instantly drowned out the noise of the crowd. I’d never felt anything like this before. And I’m so grateful for this. For us.”

It’s not hard for Luke to believe Calum. He knows Calum gets it. They’ve seen this city together so many times, in so many ways. There’s Calum’s laughs ringing at Connolly station and Calum’s spicy scent at Queen of Tarts café and Calum’s fingerprints on every clothing rack at every shopping center. And as he maps out Calum’s body with his fingers and mouth he finds traces of the river in Calum’s mouth, and he hears the relief of the streets after working hours when Calum sings to him at night, and he smells the rain hitting the pavement when they drink tea in front of the TV.

They make one with each other and with this city, and it’s the most gorgeous thing Luke has ever experienced.

“There’s only one thing that can make this better than it is,” Calum says gravely.

“What is that?”

Calum tilts Luke’s head up slightly, leans in until he can whisper in Luke’s ear. “Going skinny dipping.”

Calum erupts into laughter just then, and Luke does, too, rolling his eyes once again before shutting Calum up by sealing their lips together gently.

As Calum drops his near finished milkshake to the ground to fit both hands in Luke’s curls and Luke tastes the chocolate on his lips and the cooling air wraps itself around them both, Luke thinks, he might have fallen for the city first, but it’s the boy that will have him wrapped around his finger forever.

**Author's Note:**

> kudos/comments are very much appreciated <3


End file.
